More 5th Grade Stuff

For the remainder of 5th grade, W will be doing the following:

• Language Arts - Simply Grammar, Spelling Skills 5
• Writing - Journaling, oral & written narrations, Writing Strands
• Spelling - Spelling Skills 5
• Independent Reading - His choice
• Math - Typical 5th-grade standards (various 5th Grade workbooks & test-prep books, Khan Academy)
• History - Colonial America & the American Revolution (books, websites, projects, timelines, documentaries, field trips/classes)
• Geography - Mapwork related to colonial times, states & capitals, countries & capitals, oceans (atlases, flash cards, websites, workbooks)
• Social Studies - US Government, Presidential Elections, CNN Student News (books, websites, documentaries)
• Science - Weather, plants, cells, basic physics (books, websites, experiments, documentaries, field trips/classes, nature study/journaling)
• Health - Nutrition & fitness (smart shopping, exercising, documentaries)
• Spanish - DK Language Learner  (I just bought this.  I'll let you know how it is)
• PE - Karate 4-5 classes/week, Free play

W is considering enrolling in this accelerated secondary school which goes from 7th-12th grades.  I'm not very keen on middle school at all, but it's his choice, and it's one of the very few schools I actually approve of.  They give an admissions test next year and W will be taking it.  He may not want to actually go when the time comes, but at least he'll have taken the necessary steps to have that option right up to the last minute.  It's my job to make sure all doors are open for him if he does choose to go there.  He also will be taking the California Achievement Test (CAT-E) in a couple of months.

So, based on that, we are also doing some test-prep.  There are test samples online and I just bought a couple of prep books for him to practice with.  I promise this will not make our daily academics any longer.  We still spend about 2-3 hours on the academic stuff each morning.  Afternoons are still always free to pursue interests and just be a kid.  I'm not going to stress over these tests.  I know they hardly scratch the surface of what my son knows and understands.  W has never really taken a test before, so he's a bit nervous, but is eager for the experience and to see what it's all about.  I'm sure he'll be fine.